MARIETTA, Ga. — Marietta City Schools will issue a temporary mask mandate for all students, staff and visitors starting Monday.
School officials said they hope the mandate is temporary, but did not release when the mandate would be lifted. Students and parents can file for a religious exemption.
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Marietta City Schools has reported at least 96 cases of COVID-19 since school began on Aug. 3. Officials said that in the first nine days of school, there were 45 new cases of COVID-19. In the past three days, there have been 51 new cases of the virus.
Officials said the number of positive cases in Cobb County has increased by 88.2% in the last two weeks.
The district is also modifying its quarantine protocols by shifting its identification of “close contacts” from six feet to three feet. Students identified as close contacts will have to quarantine from seven to 10 days.
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The district announced it will also start COVID-19 testing on Monday. Details will be released on the district’s website.
“Our approach is intended to be responsive to the rising cases of school-based transmission and to diminish the lost instructional time experienced by students who are quarantined due to being a close contact of a positive case,” officials said.
Marietta City Schools are offering two more vaccine clinics on Aug. 26 and 27.
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